Joe Paterno Passes; PR Issues Remain for Penn State

With the passing of Penn State’s embattled football coach Joe Paterno and the child sex abuse case pending against former defensive coordinator, assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, I found myself thinking about the public relations fallout of one of the worst scandals in college sports history. As someone that has worked on client-related crises and issues, the way this scandal unfolded was troubling for several reasons.

First, the initial investigation of Sandusky began in 2008; meaning Penn State could have assembled a PR/crisis communications team to help manage the pending meltdown. Also, a crisis plan for the university should have been developed long before the investigation and updated on a frequent basis. If there even was a crisis plan, it was either poorly developed or never implemented.

Additionally, any initial statements issued by the university should have declared decisive and exhaustive action to make matters right. Instead, university officials initially defended athletic director Tim Curley’s and senior vice president Gary Schultz’s handling of the allegations made against Sandusky. Keep in mind, these administration officials, like Paterno, chose not to report the alleged sexual abuse to the police. It also should be noted that former university president Graham Spanier and Paterno released widely panned statements saying they should be released of any wrongdoing.

Toward that end, it appears Penn State’s external messaging has improved very little since the scandal broke. At an alumni town hall meeting last month in Philadelphia, university president Rodney Erickson said the school’s crisis can be blamed on one person: Jerry Sandusky. He also claimed this is Sandusky’s scandal, not Penn State’s. Further, Erickson proclaimed to the crowd, “We’re not going to let what one individual did destroy the reputation of this university.”

Erickson’s statements echo the same denial and shortsightedness that landed Penn State in hot water. I think most would contend the chain of events leading up to the sex abuse scandal was a systemic failure of epic proportion. The continued failure to acknowledge ownership means the university still does not get it from a PR perspective.

Also at the town hall meeting, an alumnus feared the worst was not over for Penn State. She said, “The school wasn’t prepared for the media crush that followed the arrest of Sandusky and the school officials [for perjury] and doubts they’re preparing now for their trials.” If Penn State has not learned anything about the past several months, they had better get busy developing an actionable, comprehensive crisis plan, message points for spokespersons, collateral, etc. to handle the next media circus that assuredly awaits them.

Putting our “know how” into practice

NAPA AUTO PARTS, the nation’s top brand in the automotive aftermarket, is ramping up its retail operation across the country with grand reopening celebrations to show off its transformed “top stores,” expanded inventory and “NAPA Know How.” Cookerly designed a creative program that has successfully sparked conversations across media and social media channels in the target markets, enhanced community relationships, built awareness/visibility, increased customer traffic at store events and helped boost NAPA sales and follow-on business.

Developing award-winning campaigns for OEM

Cookerly helps steer major corporate and executive initiatives for the nation’s #1 luxury automaker including recent award-winning programs such as “Greatness Lives Here” and “No Limits,” initiatives designed to empower the next generation through community activism and education. We recently helped launch the Mercedes-Benz A-Class vehicle line including MBUX artificial intelligence including tie-ins with the Super Bowl, Ludacris and the Ron Clark Academy. Leveraging paid, earned, shared and owned media, the Cookerly team supports MBUSA across both external and internal channels.

Consumer, Corporate & Media

As vice president at Cookerly, Mike Rieman specializes in building and maintaining relationships with the media and has an excellent track record of landing significant placements in print and broadcast media including USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg and Money Magazine.

Mike comes to the firm with more than a decade of public relations and journalism experience. As a former news editor, Mike understands how to work with his clients to craft stories that garner recognition on traditional and social media channels. He has led numerous award winning campaigns for a number of clients, including Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Construction Market Data Group and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency’s Ready Georgia campaign. Favorite recent assignments include a campaign to announce McDelivery, McDonald’s new delivery service.

Mike is a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma and a graduate of the University of Georgia where he earned a degree in speech communications. He serves on the PRSA Georgia Chapter Programming Committee and is an avid sports fan and trail runner. He resides in Marietta with his wife and two children.

Interested in talking about consumer, corporate or media?

Corporate Communications

As vice president of Cookerly, Sheryl Sellaway uses her extensive corporate communications background to lead consumer PR efforts, deliver strategy for marketing programs and share expertise about community initiatives.

An award-winning speechwriter, Sheryl comes to the firm with over 20 years’ expertise in media relations, employee communications and community affairs. Some of her best work has occurred while leading product launches, handling crisis situations, managing senior leadership meetings and overseeing employee events.

Sheryl is a Georgia native with an MBA from Amber University and a bachelor’s degree from Georgia State University. Active in the community, she is a Leadership Atlanta graduate currently serving on several boards including Bethany Christian Services. Sheryl is an author, pen collector, avid runner, mentor and philanthropist.

Consumer, Healthcare & Integrated Marketing

Emily has an excellent track record in building and maintaining relationships with the media and has landed significant placements with CNN, USA TODAY, CNBC, U.S. News and World Report and more. She spearheads internal campaigns for Mercedes-Benz USA and Novelis, as well as integrated marketing and social media programs for Pinewood Forest, a new urbanist community adjacent to the second largest movie studio in the country.

Emily has more than 15 years of experience in communications and has worked on a number of award-winning campaigns for clients such as SunTrust, Shepherd’s Men and Mercedes-Benz USA.

Emily graduated cum laude from Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL with a degree in communication arts and is a member of the PRSA Georgia Chapter. Emily resides in Smyrna with her husband and two sons.

Interested in talking about consumer, healthcare or integrated marketing?

Creative Services

As design director at Cookerly, Tim serves as the creative lead in the development of branding campaigns, print collateral and digital media for clients across a broad range of industries, including consumer, professional services, healthcare and technology.

With more than 20 years of experience as an award-winning designer of print, multimedia and web campaigns, Tim provides expertise in the creative development of branding campaigns, print collateral, advertising and digital media.

As an honor graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, he earned dual degrees in graphic design and illustration.

Interested in talking about creative services?

Corporate Communications

As a senior vice president at Cookerly, Matt helps organizations protect and advance their reputations and bottom lines through strategic communications programs. Using creativity, planning and flawless execution, he works with a team to deliver compelling public relations campaigns that produce results and support clients’ business objectives.

Industry expertise includes banking/finance, energy and automotive across clients such as SunTrust Banks, Colonial Pipeline and Mercedes-Benz USA. Recently, Matt helped launch SunTrust’s first Super Bowl ad and generate earned media for the grand opening of SunTrust Park, the home of the Atlanta Braves.

Matt is also a member of Cookerly’s crisis response team and has experience managing major crises generating national headlines.

A Georgia State University graduate with a degree in economics, Matt served as managing editor of the student newspaper. He attended graduate school at George Washington University, receiving a master’s degree in strategic management, public policy and economics (MPA).

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The Arthritis Foundation has undergone significant changes and seeks to build upon a renewed direction with fresh perspectives. The foundation relies on Cookerly to infuse new ideas, raise national awareness and engage internal stakeholders to support the organization’s new and powerful “Champion of Yes” branding. The comprehensive communications strategies and tactics conceived and implemented for the foundation put a national focus on the critical nature of arthritis and are helping reinvigorate the organization’s image of one committed to conquering the insidious and debilitating disease.